In American football, running (also referred to as rushing) is, along with passing, one of the two main methods of advancing the ball down the field.[1] A running play generally occurs when the quarterback hands or tosses the ball backwards to the running back,[2] but other players, such as the quarterback, can run with the ball.[1] In the National Football League (NFL), there have been six pairs of teammates that have each recorded 1,000 rushing yards in the same season. Five of these duos consisted of running backs, and a sixth consisted of a running back and a quarterback.

1.
Atlanta Falcons
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The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Falcons compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference South division. The Falcons joined the NFL in 1965 as an expansion team, the AFL instead granted a franchise to Miami. The Falcons are tied with the Dolphins for being the second-oldest NFL franchise in the Deep South, the Falcons played their home games at the Georgia Dome in downtown Atlanta from the 1992 to 2016 NFL seasons. Construction began on Mercedes-Benz Stadium in May 2014, with play projected to begin there during the 2017 season and their headquarters and practice facilities are located at a 50-acre site in Flowery Branch, Georgia. Two years later, the AFL held another exhibition, this time with the New York Jets taking on the San Diego Chargers, in 1965, after the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium was built, the city of Atlanta felt the time was right to start pursuing professional football. Another group reported it had deposited earnest money for a team in the AFL and he forced the city to make a choice between the two leagues. By June 30, the city picked Rankin Smith and the NFL, former commissioner Pete Rozelle and Smith made the deal in about five minutes and the Atlanta Falcons brought the largest and most popular sport to the city of Atlanta. The Atlanta expansion franchise became the 15th NFL franchise, and they were awarded the first pick in the 1966 NFL draft as well as the pick in each of the first five rounds. The Falcons drafted All-American linebacker Tommy Nobis from the University of Texas with the first pick of the draft, the league also held the 1966 NFL Expansion Draft six weeks later in which the Falcons selected unprotected players from existing franchises. Although the Falcons selected many players in those drafts, they still were not able to win right away. The Atlanta Falcons Football Club received its nickname on August 29,1965, miss Julia Elliott, a school teacher from Griffin, Georgia, was singled out from many people who suggested Falcons as the nickname for the new franchise. Elliott wrote, the Falcon is proud and dignified, with great courage and it is deadly and has a great sporting tradition. The Falcons had their first season in 1966, and their first preseason game on August 1,1966, under Head Coach Norb Hecker they lost their first nine regular-season games in 1966 and secured their first victory on the road against the New York Giants. The team finished the 1960s with only 12 wins, the Falcons had their first Monday Night Football game in Atlanta during the 1970 season. The only two winning seasons in this period were 1971 and 1973. In the 1978 season, the Falcons qualified for the playoffs for the first time, the following week, they lost to the Dallas Cowboys 27–20 in the Divisional Playoffs. In the 1980 season, after a winning streak, the Falcons posted a franchise then-best record of 12–4

2.
Warrick Dunn
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Warrick DeMon Dunn is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League for twelve seasons. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 12th overall in the 1997 NFL Draft, Dunn was named AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1997 and earned three Pro Bowl selections in his career. After his playing career, Dunn took a minority stake in the Falcons ownership group led by Arthur Blank, at Catholic High in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dunn played quarterback, cornerback, and running back. During his sophomore year he helped lead Catholic High to the state 4A championship game for the first time in its history and he was an All-America honorable mention selection by USA Today as a senior. On January 7,1993, Dunns mother, Betty Smothers, three men were sent to prison for the murder, and two remain on death row. Dunn, two days after his 18th birthday, became the head of his family and raised his siblings, Dunn met with one of the convicted men at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in 2007. Dunn played college football at Florida State University, where he rushed for over 1,000 yards in the 3 straight seasons and he graduated in 1997 with a bachelors degree in information studies. He was a three-time All-ACC selection, Dunns jersey, along with those of other Seminoles players such as Fred Biletnikoff, Ron Sellers, Ron Simmons, Charlie Ward, Deion Sanders, and Chris Weinke, has been retired by the university. His number may still be worn by Seminole players, but his jersey will be displayed in the Moore Athletic Center at FSU and he also won a National Championship in 1993 with Florida State. Warrick Dunn was also a track and field star, named as an Associated Press All-American as a member of Florida States Mens 4x100m relay team. Dunn competed on the Seminoles Track & Field team as a sprinter during all four years he was enrolled at Florida State and his personal best in the 100 meters is 10.3 seconds. Dunn was selected in the first round of the 1997 NFL Draft with the 12th overall pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in his rookie season Dunn made an immediate impact for the Buccaneers squad. As the year finished he was selected to the NFC Pro Bowl team and was named the Associated Press Offensive Rookie of the Year, Dunn spent the next four years of his career in Tampa Bay where he was named to the Pro Bowl twice. A free agent in the 2002 offseason, Dunn signed with the Atlanta Falcons, once again, he made a positive impact on his team with 9 total TDs and in that year, he led the league with a 5.4 yards per carry average. Dunn scored the most rushing touchdowns in his career,9, duckett and also led the team in rushing with 1,106 yards. Having led his team in rushing again in 2005, Dunn was named the NFCs Pro Bowl team. For his career, Dunn has only missed 10 games and has a total of 2,256 carries for 9,461 yards 43 touchdowns, Dunn finished his first 10 seasons with over 1,000 combined rushing and receiving yards. On March 3,2008, the Falcons released Dunn per his request and this came a day after the Falcons signed former San Diego Chargers backup running back Michael Turner

3.
American football
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The offense must advance at least ten yards in four downs, or plays, or else they turn over the football to the opposing team, if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs. Points are primarily scored by advancing the ball into the teams end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponents goalposts for a field goal. The team with the most points at the end of a game wins, American football evolved in the United States, originating from the sports of association football and rugby football. The first game of American football was played on November 6,1869, during the latter half of the 1870s, colleges playing association football switched to the Rugby Union code, which allowed carrying the ball. American football as a whole is the most popular sport in the United States, Professional football and college football are the most popular forms of the game, with the other major levels being high school and youth football. As of 2012, nearly 1.1 million high school athletes and 70,000 college athletes play the sport in the United States annually, almost all of them men, in the United States, American football is referred to as football. The term football was established in the rulebook for the 1876 college football season. The terms gridiron or American football are favored in English-speaking countries where other codes of football are popular, such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, American football evolved from the sports of association football and rugby football. What is considered to be the first American football game was played on November 6,1869 between Rutgers and Princeton, two college teams, the game was played between two teams of 25 players each and used a round ball that could not be picked up or carried. It could, however, be kicked or batted with the feet, hands, head or sides, Rutgers won the game 6 goals to 4. Collegiate play continued for years in which matches were played using the rules of the host school. Representatives of Yale, Columbia, Princeton and Rutgers met on October 19,1873 to create a set of rules for all schools to adhere to. Teams were set at 20 players each, and fields of 400 by 250 feet were specified, Harvard abstained from the conference, as they favored a rugby-style game that allowed running with the ball. An 1875 Harvard-Yale game played under rugby-style rules was observed by two impressed Princeton athletes and these players introduced the sport to Princeton, a feat the Professional Football Researchers Association compared to selling refrigerators to Eskimos. Princeton, Harvard, Yale and Columbia then agreed to play using a form of rugby union rules with a modified scoring system. These schools formed the Intercollegiate Football Association, although Yale did not join until 1879, the introduction of the snap resulted in unexpected consequences. Prior to the snap, the strategy had been to punt if a scrum resulted in bad field position, however, a group of Princeton players realized that, as the snap was uncontested, they now could hold the ball indefinitely to prevent their opponent from scoring. In 1881, both teams in a game between Yale-Princeton used this strategy to maintain their undefeated records, each team held the ball, gaining no ground, for an entire half, resulting in a 0-0 tie

4.
Rush (gridiron football)
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Rushing has two different meanings in gridiron football. The first is a taken by the offense that means to advance the ball by running with it, as opposed to passing. The other is a taken by the defense that means to charge towards the quarterback. When players on the defense are collectively rushing the passer, it is called the pass rush, in both offense and defense, any rushing player is called a rusher. Rushing, on offense, is running with the ball starting from behind the line of scrimmage. While this usually means a play, any offensive play that does not involve a forward pass is a rush - also called a run. It is usually done by the back after a handoff from the quarterback, although quarterbacks. The quarterback will run when a passing play has broken down - such as when there is no receiver open to catch the ball -. A team with a quarterback who is fast and skilled at running may regularly call intentional running plays for that quarterback, but this is rare due to the increased risk of injury. A wide receiver can act as a rusher on several kinds of plays, such as on a reverse, on an end-around, or on a pass behind the line of scrimmage. However, a wide receiver screen play is intended to be a forward pass so that if the receiver drops the ball it is an incomplete pass instead of a fumble. A rushing attempt may also be referred to as a carry, with any yards gained referred to as rushing yards, as in the running back had 20 carries for 100 rushing yards

5.
Forward pass
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In several forms of football a forward pass is a throwing of the ball in the direction that the offensive team is trying to move, towards the defensive teams goal line. In some football codes, such as football, the kicked forward pass is used so ubiquitously that it is not thought of as a distinct kind of play at all. In these sports, the concept of offside is used to regulate who can be in front of the play or be nearest to the goal, however, this has not always been the case. Some earlier incarnations of football allowed unlimited forward passing, while others had strict offside rules similar to rugby, the development of the forward pass in American football shows how the game has evolved from its rugby roots into the distinctive game it is today. Illegal and experimental forward passes had been attempted as early as 1876, another change in rules occurred on January 18,1951, which established that no center, tackle, or guard could receive a forward pass. Today, the only linemen who can receive a forward pass are the ends, current rules regulate who may throw and who may receive a forward pass, and under what circumstances, as well as how the defensive team may try to prevent a pass from being completed. In American and Canadian football, a pass, usually referred to simply as a pass. This is permitted only once during a scrimmage down by the team before team possession has changed, provided the pass is thrown from in or behind the neutral zone. An illegal forward pass can incur a penalty and the loss of a down, although it may be legally intercepted by the opponents. If an eligible receiver on the passing team legally catches the ball, the pass is completed, if an opposing player legally catches the ball it is an interception. That players team immediately gains possession of the ball and he may attempt to advance the ball toward his opponents goal, if no player is able to legally catch the ball it is an incomplete pass and the ball becomes dead the moment it touches the ground. It will then be returned to the line of scrimmage for the next down. If any player interferes with an eligible receivers ability to catch the ball it is pass interference which draws a penalty of varying degree. The person passing the ball must be a member of the team. The moment that a forward pass begins is important to the game, the pass begins the moment the passers arm begins to move forward. If the passer drops the ball before this moment it is a fumble, in this case anybody can gain possession of the ball before or after it touches the ground. If the passer drops the ball while his arm is moving forward it is a pass, regardless of where the ball lands or is first touched. The quarterback generally either starts a few paces behind the line of scrimmage or drops back a few paces after the ball is snapped

6.
Quarterback
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A quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the team and line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is considered the leader of the offensive team. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually the leader of the offense, the quarterback touches the ball on almost every offensive play, and his successes and failures can have a significant impact on the fortunes of his team. Accordingly, the quarterback is among the most glorified and scrutinized positions in team sports, prior to each play, the quarterback will usually tell the rest of his team which play the team will run. After the team is lined up, the center will pass the ball back to the quarterback, usually on a running play, the quarterback will then hand or pitch the ball backwards to a half back or full back. On a passing play, the quarterback is almost always the responsible for trying to throw the ball downfield to an eligible receiver downfield. Depending on the scheme by his team, the quarterbacks role can vary. While quarterbacks in Canadian football need to be able to throw the ball often, in the NFL, quarterbacks are required to wear a uniform number between 1 and 19. In the CFL, the quarterback can wear any number from 0 to 49 and 70 to 99. Because of their numbering, quarterbacks are eligible receivers in the NCAA, NFHS, after a Super Bowl victory, the starting quarterback is the first player to be presented with the Vince Lombardi Trophy. The starting quarterback of the victorious Super Bowl team is chosen for the Im going to Disney World. Campaign, whether they are the Super Bowl MVP or not, examples include Joe Montana, Trent Dilfer, Dilfer was chosen even though teammate Ray Lewis was the MVP of Super Bowl XXXV, due to the bad publicity from Lewis murder trial the prior year. In addition to their role, quarterbacks are occasionally used in other roles. Most teams utilize a backup quarterback as their holder on placekicks, in the Wildcat, a formation where a halfback lines up behind the center and the quarterback lines up out wide, the quarterback can be used as a receiving target or a blocker. A more rare use for a quarterback is to punt the ball himself, Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway was known to perform quick kicks occasionally, typically when the Broncos were facing a third-and-long situation. As Roger Staubachs back-up, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Danny White was also the teams punter, ascending the starting role upon Staubachs retirement, White held his position as the teams punter for several seasons—a double duty he performed to All-American standard at Arizona State University. White also had two touchdown receptions as a Dallas Cowboy, both from the halfback option, if quarterbacks are uncomfortable with the formation the defense is using, they may call an audible change to their play

7.
Running back
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A running back is an American and Canadian football position, a member of the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a play, to catch passes from out of the backfield. There are usually one or two running backs on the field for a play, depending on the offensive formation. A running back may be a halfback or a fullback, a running back will sometimes be called a feature back if he is the teams starting running back. The halfback or tailback position is responsible for carrying the ball on the majority of running plays, in the modern game, an effective halfback must have a blend of both quickness and agility as a runner, as well as sure hands and good vision up-field as a receiver. Quarterbacks depend on halfbacks as a safety valve receiver when primary targets downfield are covered or when they are under pressure, occasionally, halfbacks line up as additional wide receivers. As a trick play, running backs are used to pass the ball on a halfback option play or halfback pass. The difference between halfback and tailback is the position of the player in the offensive formation. In historical formations, the lined up approximately halfway between the line of scrimmage and the fullback. Because the halfback is usually the main ball carrier, modern offensive formations have positioned the halfback behind the fullback. As a result, some systems or playbooks will call for a tailback as opposed to a halfback, in most modern college and professional football schemes, fullbacks carry the ball infrequently, instead using their stronger physiques as primary lead blockers. On most running plays, the leads the halfback, attempting to block potential tacklers before they reach the ball carrier. When fullbacks are called upon to carry the ball, the situation calls for gaining a short amount of yardage. Fullbacks are technically running backs, but today the term running back is used in referring to the halfback or tailback. Although modern fullbacks are rarely used as carriers, in previous offensive schemes fullbacks would be the designated ball carriers. In high school football, where player sizes vary greatly, fullbacks are still used as ball carriers. In high school and college offenses, the triple option uses the fullback as a primary ball carrier. The fullback plays a role by establishing an inside running threat on every play

8.
National Football League
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The National Football League is a professional American football league consisting of 32 teams, divided equally between the National Football Conference and the American Football Conference. The NFL is one of the four professional sports leagues in North America. The NFLs 17-week regular season runs from the week after Labor Day to the week after Christmas, with each team playing 16 games, the NFL was formed in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association before renaming itself the National Football League for the 1922 season. The NFL agreed to merge with the American Football League in 1966, and the first Super Bowl was held at the end of that season, the merger was completed in 1970. Today, the NFL has the highest average attendance of any sports league in the world and is the most popular sports league in the United States. S. The NFLs executive officer is the commissioner, who has authority in governing the league. The team with the most NFL championships is the Green Bay Packers with thirteen, the current NFL champions are the New England Patriots, who defeated the Atlanta Falcons 34–28 in Super Bowl LI. Another meeting held on September 17,1920 resulted in the renaming of the league to the American Professional Football Association, the league hired Jim Thorpe as its first president, and consisted of 14 teams. Only two of these teams, the Decatur Staleys and the Chicago Cardinals, remain, the first event occurred on September 26,1920 when the Rock Island Independents defeated the non-league St. Paul Ideals 48–0 at Douglas Park. On October 3,1920, the first full week of league play occurred, the following season resulted in the Chicago Staleys controversially winning the title over the Buffalo All-Americans. In 1922, the APFA changed its name to the National Football League, in 1932, the season ended with the Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth Spartans tied for first in the league standings. This method had used since the leagues creation in 1920. The league quickly determined that a game between Chicago and Portsmouth was needed to decide the leagues champion. Playing with altered rules to accommodate the playing field, the Bears won the game 9–0. Fan interest in the de facto championship game led the NFL, beginning in 1933, the 1934 season also marked the first of 12 seasons in which African Americans were absent from the league. The de facto ban was rescinded in 1946, following public pressure, the NFL was always the foremost professional football league in the United States, it nevertheless faced a large number of rival professional leagues through the 1930s and 1940s. Rival leagues included at least three separate American Football Leagues and the All-America Football Conference, on top of regional leagues of varying caliber. Three NFL teams trace their histories to these leagues, including the Los Angeles Rams

9.
Yard
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The yard is an English unit of length, in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement, that comprises 3 feet or 36 inches. It is by international agreement in 1959 standardized as exactly 0.9144 meters, a metal yardstick originally formed the physical standard from which all other units of length were officially derived in both English systems. In the 19th and 20th centuries, increasingly powerful microscopes and scientific measurement detected variation in these prototype yards which became significant as technology improved. In 1959, the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, the name derives from the Old English gerd, gyrd, &c. which was used for branches, staves, and measuring rods. It is first attested in the late-7th century laws of Ine of Wessex, where the yard of land mentioned is the yardland, an old English unit of tax assessment equal to 1⁄4 hide. Around the same time, the Lindisfarne Gospels account of the messengers from John the Baptist in the Book of Matthew used it for a branch swayed by the wind. In addition to the yardland, Old and Middle English both used their forms of yard to denote the lengths of 15 or 16 1⁄2 ft used in computing acres. A unit of three English feet is attested in a statute of c. 1300 but there it is called an ell, the use of the word yard to describe this length is first attested in Langlands poem on Piers Plowman. The usage seems to derive from the prototype standard rods held by the king, the word yard is a homonym of yard in the sense of an enclosed area of land. This second meaning of yard has a related to the verb to gird and is probably not related. The origin of the measure is uncertain, both the Romans and the Welsh used multiples of a shorter foot, but 2 1⁄2 Roman feet was a step and 3 Welsh feet was a pace. The Proto-Germanic cubit or arms-length has been reconstructed as *alinâ, which developed into the Old English ęln, Middle English elne and this has led some to derive the yard of three English feet from pacing, others from the ell or cubit, others from Henry Is arm standard. Based on the etymology of the yard, others suggest it originally derived from the girth of a persons waist. But the yard was the standard adopted by the early English soverigns. The yard continued till the reign of Henry VII. when the ell was introduced, that being a yard, the ell was borrowed from the Paris drapers. Subsequently, however, Queen Elizabeth re-introduced the yard as the English standard of measure, the earliest record of a prototype measure is the statute II Edgar Cap. 8, which survives in several variant manuscripts, in it, Edgar the Peaceful directed the Witenagemot at Andover that the measure held at Winchester should be observed throughout his realm. The statutes of William I similarly refer to and uphold the measures of his predecessors without naming them

10.
Fullback (American football)
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A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback. Examples of players who have excelled at the hybrid running-blocking-pass catching role include Mike Alstott, in the days before two platoons, the fullback was usually the teams punter and drop kicker. In modern play, the fullback is a misnomer. Before the emergence of the T-formation in the 1940s, most teams used four offensive backs on every play, a quarterback, two halfbacks, and a fullback. The quarterback began each play a quarter of the way back, the halfbacks began each play side by side and halfway back, and the fullback began each play the farthest back. In the modern game, when the quarterback is under center, fullbacks are typically known less for speed and agility and more for muscularity and the ability to shed tackles. In the modern NFL, fullbacks, while deployed as ball carriers, are often primarily a lead blocker to allow running backs to get to the secondary of the opposing teams defense. In the early 2000s, many NFL teams used blocking fullbacks, such as Tony Richardson and Lorenzo Neal and these backs cleared the way for some of the decades great running backs. There are still fullbacks who remaining prominent in the NFL, among them Aaron Ripkowski, Jamize Olawale, James Develin, John Kuhn, Patrick DiMarco, Mike Tolbert, Kyle Juszczyk, and Marcel Reece. However, in spite of their usually infrequent carries in modern NFL offenses, notably LeRon McClain was the rushing leader for the Baltimore Ravens in 2008 and Tony Richardson led the Kansas City Chiefs in rushing in 2000. Giants running back Peyton Hillis started his NFL career as a fullback before being reverted into a halfback, although technically a running back, typically fullbacks are primarily valued for their blocking in most modern day offenses. The most common and simple runs, the Dive and the Blast, in the flexbone formation, however, the fullback can often be used as the primary rushing threat. In many other schemes, the fullback is used as a receiver. In selected plays, some teams will have a defensive lineman report as a receiver to line up as a fullback or tight end in a Miami package in goalline formation. Defensive Tackle William The Refrigerator Perry scored a touchdown in Super Bowl XX from the fullback position, most teams in the NFL do not have a substitute fullback, though there are exceptions. The role can be filled by backup or number three or four tight ends or bigger and less-frequently-used running backs. In modern offenses, fullbacks in an I-formation can be motioned into a 2-TE formation or H-back formation, the position is less frequently used in Canadian football, which focuses more on passing than running the ball

11.
Larry Csonka
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Lawrence Richard Larry Csonka is a former professional American football fullback and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. With the Miami Dolphins he was a member of their season in 1972. One of six children, Csonka was born in the Akron suburb Stow, Ohio and he weighed almost ten pounds at birth,150 pounds at age 12, and 220 pounds at 16. Csonka began his career at Stow High School as the starting tailback on the 1963 Stow Bulldogs squad that won the Metropolitan League of the Akron-area championship under coach Dick Fortner. He played for Stow from 1960 to 1963, Csonka became a running back by accident. Because of his size, he played end on the varsity team as a sophomore. In the last game that year, he was sent in as a substitute on the return team. The ball just happened to go to him and he took off running with it, wrote Csonka, I ran over two tacklers before I realized what I was doing. I didnt score or save the game, but I got a tremendous feeling carrying the ball, I was thrashing around, trying to run six ways at once. I knew then that I wanted to run with the ball, even so, the next year Csonka had a tough time before the start of the season convincing his teammates and coaches that he could play running back. They said he was too big and too slow, although there were doubts about his abilities, he did well in the first game of the season. Csonka was recruited by Clemson, Iowa, Vanderbilt, and Syracuse and he chose Syracuse, where he played middle linebacker in his first season before being switched to fullback from 1965 to 1967, the position where he was named an All-American. He established many of the rushing records, including some previously held by Ernie Davis, Jim Nance, Floyd Little. In his three seasons at Syracuse, Csonka rushed for a school record 2,934 yards, rushed for 100 yards in 14 different games, from 1965 to 1967, he ranked 19th, ninth and fifth in the nation in rushing. He was the Most Valuable Player in the East–West Shrine Game, the Hula Bowl, in 1989, he was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame. Csonka was the No.1 pick by the American Football Leagues Miami Dolphins in the 1968 Common Draft, the eighth player and first running back drafted in the first round. He signed a contract for $20,000 the first year, $25,000 the second. Csonkas pro career got off to a shaky start, in the fifth game of the 1968 season, vs. Buffalo, he was knocked out and suffered a concussion when his head hit the ground during a tackle

12.
Halfback (American football)
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A halfback is an offensive position in American football, whose duties involve lining up in the backfield and carrying the ball on most rushing plays, i. e. a running back. The halfback position is one of the more glamorous positions on the field, sometimes the halfback can catch the ball from the backfield on short passing plays as he is an eligible receiver. Occasionally, they line up as wide receivers. When not running or catching the ball, the responsibility of a halfback is to aid the offensive linemen in blocking. Before the emergence of the T-formation in the 1940s, all members of the backfield were legitimate threats to run or pass the ball. Most teams used four offensive backs on every play, a quarterback, the quarterback began each play a quarter of the way back, the halfbacks began each play side by side and halfway back, and the fullback began each play the farthest back. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the position was both an offensive and defensive position. There has also been a shift in most offense’s dependence on halfbacks, however, the average output of the halfback has not changed. Older systems require the halfback be proficient at throwing the ball downfield as well, many of the “scat backs” in the modern era produce more total yards and touchdowns than their ancestor “power backs” by breaking off big plays on outside runs and receptions. The spread offense and the hurry-up offense change the halfback’s role, the spread, the hurry-up, and the pro-style offenses dominate American football but the “smash-mouth” style of play is far from extinct. A power-running scheme is often utilized to counter an effective Spread attack, as it allows a team to control the clock and this strategy is utilized in NFL, college, and all other forms of American football. The need for “power backs is very prevalent, alongside the need for “scat backs”, in the past few decades the role of the halfback has gone through a great shift as most offensive game plans are now fueled by creativity and finesse instead of raw force. Stamina and durability is more important than ever in the hurry-up offense, on the other hand, speed is often valued over strength, and pass-catching ability is sometimes valued over blocking proficiency. Power was once the most desired trait in a halfback, but has been taken by the need for a diverse skill set. In the last few decades the running back’s individual share of output has declined as quarterbacks are generally treated as the cornerstone of the offense. The demands of an up-tempo offense also favor a multiple running back system, from the dawn of American football through the 1880s most offensive schemes focused on the running game. In a running based game plan the halfback was typically the cornerstone of the offense and this system focused on a physical run attack concentrated in the inside of the field, and therefore depended on a skilled “power back”. There were no forward passes, and pure speed took a backseat to tackle-breaking and bucking ability, there was a focus on physicality over finesse, as this type of playing style earned the moniker of “smash mouth” football

13.
Mercury Morris
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Eugene Edward Mercury Morris, is a former American football running back and kick returner. He played for seven years, primarily for the Miami Dolphins in the American Football League, Morris played in three Super Bowls and was selected to three Pro Bowls. In 1982, Morris was convicted of drug trafficking charges. After three and one-half years in prison, Morris was released after an agreement in which he pleaded no contest to cocaine conspiracy charges. Mercury was nicknamed early on in his career for his quickness when running with the ball, Morris was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and attended Avonworth High School in the northwestern suburbs of the city. Morris attended West Texas State University from 1965 to 1969, where he was an All-American at tailback in 1967 and 1968, in 1967, he finished second in the nation to O. J. Simpson of USC in rushing yards with 1274. Simpson broke the single-season rushing just one week after Morris set it, Morris three-season career rushing record was broken two years later by Don McCauley. </ref name=morris>After college, Morris was picked in the third round of the 1969 AFL-NFL Common Draft by the AFLs Miami Dolphins. Morris excelled as both a running back and kick returner, the majority of his playing days were spent with the Miami Dolphins. From 1969 to 1971, he backed up Jim Kiick at halfback, in his rookie year of 1969, Morris had averaged 26.4 yards per kickoff return, leading the AFL in kickoff returns with 43 and in kickoff return yardage with 1136. Both totals would have led the NFL. His 105-yard return was the longest in the AFL that season, and he was also one of the AFLs leading punt returners that year. In 1970, he missed some time on the due to a leg injury. That season, Morris was selected for the Pro Bowl for the first time as a kick returner, in the 1972 and 1973 seasons, Morris earned Super Bowl rings in Super Bowl VII and Super Bowl VIII, and was selected for the Pro Bowl in both years. In 1972, Morris shared the position with Kiick, participating in a few less plays than Kiick. That year, he ran for exactly 1,000 yds on 190 carries, becoming, with teammate Larry Csonka and that year, Morris also led the NFL with 12 rushing touchdowns, and his 5.3 yard per carry average was third in the NFL. By 1973, Morris had taken over the starting spot and rushed for 954 yards on 149 carries. His 6.4 yard per carry led the NFL that season. Although Morris Super Bowl statistics pale in comparison with teammate Larry Csonka, in 1972, he led the Dolphins in rushing in both the divisional playoff game against Cleveland and the AFC Championship Game against Pittsburgh with 72 yards and 76 yards respectively

14.
Miami Dolphins
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The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football franchise based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues American Football Conference East division. The Dolphins play their games at Hard Rock Stadium in the northern suburb of Miami Gardens, Florida. The Dolphins and the Atlanta Falcons are the oldest NFL franchises in the Deep South, however, of the four AFC East teams, they are the only team in the division that was not a charter member of the American Football League. The Dolphins team was founded by attorney-politician Joe Robbie and actor-comedian Danny Thomas and they began play in the AFL in 1966. For the first few years the Dolphins full-time training camp and practice facilities were at Saint Andrews School, in 1970 the Dolphins joined the NFL when the AFL–NFL merger occurred. The team made its first Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl VI, Miami also appeared in Super Bowl XVII and Super Bowl XIX, losing both games. For most of their history, the Dolphins were coached by Don Shula. Under Shula, the Dolphins posted losing records in two of his 26 seasons as the head coach. During the period spanning 1983 to the end of 1999, quarterback Dan Marino became one of the most prolific passers in NFL history, Marino led the Dolphins to five division titles,10 playoff appearances, and Super Bowl XIX before retiring following the 1999 season. During the summer of 1966, the Dolphins training camp was in St. Pete Beach with practices in August at Boca Ciega High School in Gulfport. The Dolphins had a combined 15–39–2 record in their first four seasons under head coach George Wilson, before Don Shula was hired as head coach. Shula was a Paul Brown disciple who had been lured from the Baltimore Colts after losing Super Bowl III two seasons earlier to the AFLs New York Jets and finishing 8–5–1 the following season. Interestingly, Shula got his first NFL coaching job from then-Detroit Head Coach George Wilson, when Shula replaced Wilson at Miami the Colts charged the Dolphins with tampering in their hiring of Shula, costing the Dolphins their first round draft pick in 1971. Shula introduced himself to the Miami press by saying that he didnt have any magic formulas, Shulas early training camps with the Dolphins, with four workouts a day, would soon be the stuff of sweltering, painful legend. But Shulas hard work paid dividends, as Miami improved to a 10–4 record and their first-ever playoff appearance. The Dolphins were successful in the early 1970s, becoming the first team to advance to the AFC Championship for three consecutive seasons and they captured the AFC championship in 1971 behind quarterback Bob Griese, running backs Larry Csonka and Jim Kiick, and wide receiver Paul Warfield. The AFC Divisional Playoff Game, in which the Dolphins defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, was the longest contest in NFL history, in Super Bowl VI, however, Miami lost to the Dallas Cowboys 24–3

15.
1972 Miami Dolphins season
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The 1972 Miami Dolphins season was the team’s seventh season, and third season in the National Football League. The 1972 Dolphins are the only National Football League team to win the Super Bowl with a perfect season, the undefeated campaign was led by coach Don Shula and notable players Bob Griese, Earl Morrall, and Larry Csonka. The 1972 Dolphins went 14–0 in the season and won all three post-season games, including Super Bowl VII against the Washington Redskins, to finish 17–0. The team remains the only NFL team to complete a season undefeated and untied from the opening game through the Super Bowl. The closest team to repeating this feat was the 2007 New England Patriots, the 2007 Patriots were able to record a better regular season than the 1972 Dolphins because the NFL lengthened it to 16 games in 1978. Besides the 1972 Dolphins and 2007 Patriots, the other team to ever complete the regular season undefeated and untied is the Chicago Bears. Both of those Bears teams however failed to win the NFL Championship Game, during the 1972 season, Bob Griese’s ankle was broken in Week 5 as he was sacked by San Diego Chargers defensive tackle Ron East and defensive end Deacon Jones. He was replaced by veteran Earl Morrall for the rest of the regular season, on the ground, running backs Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris became the first teammates to each rush for 1,000 yards in a season. Paul Warfield led the receivers, averaging over 20 yards per catch on 29 receptions, the offensive line included future Hall of Fame members Jim Langer and Larry Little and Pro Bowler Norm Evans. It was led by linebacker Nick Buoniconti, end Bill Stanfill, tackle Manny Fernandez, and safeties Dick Anderson and Jake Scott. In all, nine players—Csonka, Morris, Warfield, Little, Evans, Buoniconti, Stanfill, Anderson and Scott—were selected to the Pro Bowl, and Morrall, Stanfill and Anderson were named 1st team All-Pro. On August 20,2013, four decades after their accomplishment, President Barack Obama hosted the 1972 Dolphins, coach Don Shula tried to play down the myth by saying that two players, Dick Anderson and Nick Buoniconti, who live near each other sometimes have a toast together. That celebration comes with the connotation that they no longer drink alcoholic beverages, the 1972 Miami Dolphins were the first team to execute a perfect regular season in the post-merger NFL. They are the team in NFL history to go undefeated and untied in the regular season and postseason. After their loss to the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl VI, Don Shula had vowed to not get to the Super Bowl, to achieve this, he made the team watch the loss two times at training camp. Shula would later go on to say, I think that’s when we all came together for what was going happen for the two years. What I stressed in the room was that we wanted to make sure this wouldn’t happen again. Our goal was not to go to the Super Bowl but to win it, an enduring controversy is that the 1972 Dolphins played a soft schedule not possible under the current scheduling formula

16.
Super Bowl
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The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the National Football League. The game is the culmination to a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. Normally, Roman numerals are used to each game, rather than the year in which it is held. For example, Super Bowl I was played on January 15,1967, the single exception to this rule is Super Bowl 50, which was played on February 7,2016, following the 2015 regular season. The next game, Super Bowl LII, scheduled for February 4,2018, the game was created as part of a merger agreement between the NFL and its then-rival league, the American Football League. It was agreed that the two champion teams would play in the AFL–NFL World Championship Game until the merger was to officially begin in 1970. After the merger, each league was redesignated as a conference, currently, the National Football Conference leads the league with 26 wins to 25 wins for the American Football Conference. The Pittsburgh Steelers have the most Super Bowl championship titles, with six, the New England Patriots have the most Super Bowl appearances, with nine. The day on which the Super Bowl is played, now considered by some as an unofficial American national holiday, is called Super Bowl Sunday and it is the second-largest day for U. S. food consumption, after Thanksgiving Day. In addition, the Super Bowl has frequently been the most-watched American television broadcast of the year, in 2015, Super Bowl XLIX became the most-watched American television program in history with an average audience of 114. The NFL restricts the use of its Super Bowl trademark, it is called the Big Game or other generic terms by non-sponsoring corporations. As a result, watching and discussing the broadcasts commercials has become a significant aspect of the event, for four decades after its 1920 inception, the NFL successfully fended off several rival leagues. However, in 1960, it encountered its most serious competitor when the American Football League was formed. The AFL vied heavily with the NFL for both players and fans, but by the middle of the decade the strain of competition led to merger talks between the two leagues. Prior to the 1966 season, the NFL and AFL reached an agreement that was to take effect for the 1970 season. As part of the merger, the champions of the two agreed to meet in a world championship game for professional American football until the merger was effected. A bowl game is a college football game. Exploiting the Rose Bowl Games popularity, post-season college football contests were created for Miami, New Orleans, and El Paso, Texas in 1935, by the time the first Super Bowl was played, the term bowl for any major American football game was well established

17.
Franco Harris
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Franco Harris is a former American football fullback who played in the National Football League for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks. In the 1972 NFL Draft he was picked up by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round and his selection by the team was considered controversial at the time, as many thought the team would select his Penn State teammate, Lydell Mitchell. He played his first 12 years in the NFL with the Steelers, his 13th and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990. Harris was born in Fort Dix, New Jersey and his African-American father served in World War II, his mother was a war bride from Italy. Harris graduated from Rancocas Valley Regional High School in Mount Holly Township, New Jersey in 1968 and he led the team in scoring in 1970. 1969,115 carries for 643 yards and 10 TD.12 catches for 189 yards,1970,142 carries for 675 yards and 8 TD.6 catches for 66 yards. 1971,123 carries for 684 yards and 6 TD.10 catches for 97 yards and 1 TD, in his first season with the Steelers, Harris was named the leagues Rookie of the Year by both The Sporting News and United Press International. In that season he gained 1,055 yards on 188 carries and he also rushed for 10 touchdowns and caught four touchdown passes. He was popular with Pittsburghs large Italian-American population, his fans dubbing themselves Francos Italian Army, in his 13 professional seasons, Harris gained 12,120 yards on 2,949 carries, a 4.1 yards per carry average, and scored 91 rushing touchdowns. He caught 307 passes for 2,287 yards, a 7.4 yards per reception average, Harriss 12,120 career rushing yards rank him 12th all time in the NFL, while his 91 career rushing touchdowns rank him 10th all time tied with Jerome Bettis. Harris was chosen for nine consecutive Pro Bowls, and was All-Pro in 1977, Harris rushed for more than 1,000 yards in eight seasons, breaking a record set by Jim Brown. The running back tandem of Harris and Rocky Bleier combined with a defense to win four Super Bowls following the 1974,1975,1978. On January 12,1975 he was the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl IX, in that game he rushed for 158 yards, Harris was the first African American as well as the first Italian-American to be named Super Bowl MVP. Harris was a contributor for the Steelers in all of their first four Super Bowl wins. His Super Bowl career totals of 101 carries for 354 yards are records, Harris claims he extended his career and thus his contribution to the teams objectives by avoiding unnecessary contact. Following the 1983 season, Harris and Walter Payton were both closing in on Jim Browns NFL rushing record, and Harris asked the Rooney family for a pay raise. The Rooney family refused, believing that Harris was on the downside of his career, the Steelers released Harris in training camp in 1984 and he eventually signed with the Seattle Seahawks during the 1984 season. He played just eight games with the team, gaining only 170 yards before retiring, Harris was a key player in one of professional footballs most famous plays, dubbed The Immaculate Reception by Pittsburgh sportscaster Myron Cope

18.
Rocky Bleier
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Robert Patrick Rocky Bleier is an American former professional football player. He was a National Football League halfback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1968, nicknamed Rocky as a baby, Bleier said, As the first born of the family, my dad was proud, as all parents are. And the guys would come into the bar and say Bob, and my dad would go, Aw, you should see him, guys, looks like a little rock sitting in that crib. So theyd come back in the bar and theyd say, Hey Bob, so after that, thats how I got it. Born and raised in Appleton, Wisconsin, Bleier was the oldest of four children of Bob and Ellen Bleier and he had a paper route as a youth, and graduated from Xavier High School in 1964, where he starred in football and basketball. In football, Bleier was a three-time all-state selection as running back and he was a team captain in football, basketball, and track. Bleier played college football at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, during his junior season in 1966, the Fighting Irish won the national championship and he was a team captain as a senior in 1967. He was selected in the 16th round of the 1968 NFL/AFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, after his rookie season with the Steelers, Bleier was drafted into the U. S. Army in December 1968 during the Vietnam War. On August 20, while on patrol in Heip Duc, Bleier was wounded in the thigh by an enemy rifle bullet when his platoon was ambushed in a rice paddy. While he was down, a grenade landed nearby after bouncing off a fellow soldier. He lost part of his foot in the blast as well. He was later awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart, while he was recovering in a hospital in Tokyo, doctors told him that he could not play football again. Soon after, he received a postcard from Steelers owner Art Rooney which read Rock - the teams not doing well. Bleier later said, When you have somebody take the time and interest to send you a postcard, something that didnt have to do. After several surgeries, he was discharged from the military in July 1970, Bleier rejoined the Steelers in camp in 1970. Upon his return, he couldnt walk without being in pain and he was put on injured reserve for the season, but returned in 1971 and played on special teams. He spent several seasons trying to get increased playing time, and was waived on two occasions, but Bleier never gave up, and said that he worked hard so that some time in the future you didnt have to ask yourself what if. An offseason training regimen brought Bleier back to 212 lb in the summer of 1974, since Preston Pearson was wearing number 26, Bleier switched to number 20 when he returned to the team

19.
Pittsburgh Steelers
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The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Steelers compete in the National Football League, as a club of the leagues American Football Conference North division. Founded in 1933, the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC, Pittsburgh has won more Super Bowl titles and hosted more conference championship games than any other NFL team. The Steelers have won 8 AFC championships, tied with the Denver Broncos and they share the record for most conference championship games played in with the San Francisco 49ers. The Steelers share the record for second most Super Bowl appearances with the Broncos, and Dallas Cowboys, the Steelers lost their most recent championship appearance, Super Bowl XLV, on February 6,2011. The Steelers were founded as the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 8,1933, by Art Rooney, taking its name from the baseball team of the same name. The ownership of the Steelers has remained within the Rooney family since its founding, the current owner is Arts son, Dan Rooney, who has given much control of the franchise to his son Art Rooney II. The Steelers enjoy a large, widespread fanbase nicknamed Steeler Nation, the Steelers currently play their home games at Heinz Field on Pittsburghs North Side in the North Shore neighborhood, which also hosts the University of Pittsburgh Panthers. Built in 2001, the stadium replaced Three Rivers Stadium which hosted the Steelers for 31 seasons, prior to Three Rivers, the Steelers had played their games in Pitt Stadium and Forbes Field. The Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL first took to the field as the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 20,1933, through the 1930s, the Pirates never finished higher than second place in their division, or with a record better than.500. Prior to the 1940 season, the Pirates renamed themselves the Steelers, during World War II, the Steelers experienced player shortages. They twice merged with other NFL franchises to field a team, during the 1943 season, they merged with the Philadelphia Eagles forming the Phil-Pitt Eagles and were known as the Steagles. In 1944, they merged with the Chicago Cardinals and were known as Card-Pitt and this team finished 0–10, marking the only winless team in franchise history. The Steelers made the playoffs for the first time in 1947 and this forced a tie-breaking playoff game at Forbes Field, which the Steelers lost 21–0. The Steelers also received a $3 million relocation fee, which was a windfall for them, the Steelers history of bad luck changed with the hiring of coach Chuck Noll for the 1969 season. The Pittsburgh Steelers 1974 draft was their best ever, no team has ever drafted four future Hall of Famers in one year. They also enjoyed a regular season streak of 49 consecutive wins against teams that would finish with a record that year. The Steelers suffered a rash of injuries in the 1980 season, the 1981 season was no better, with an 8–8 showing

20.
Kevin Mack
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James Kevin Mack is a former professional American football player who played running back. Mack was born in Kings Mountain, North Carolina and he played football collegiately at Clemson University. Mack played for the Los Angeles Express of the United States Football League in 1984 and he was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the 1st round of the 1984 NFL Supplemental Draft of USFL and CFL Players. During his rookie season with the Browns in 1985, he rushed for 1,104 yards and 7 touchdowns, Mack played for the Browns for nine seasons, from 1985 to 1993. In 1985 Mack rushed for 1,105 yards and halfback Earnest Byner rushed for 1,001 yards becoming just the third pair of teammates to run for over 1,000 yards for the team in the same season. Nicknamed Mack Truck, he was a two-time Pro Bowl selection in 1985 and 1987

21.
2006 Atlanta Falcons season
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The 2006 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchises 41st in the National Football League. The team attempted to improve on their 8–8 record in 2005, Falcons quarterback Michael Vick became the first quarterback in modern NFL history to rush for over 1,000 yards, with 1,039. Running back Warrick Dunn rushed for 1,140 yards, making the 2006 Falcons only the team since the AFL-NFL merger to have two 1, 000-yard rushers. The Falcons are, however, the team to have multiple 1, 000-yard rushers. This was Vicks last season with Atlanta as his ongoing dogfighting case in the 2007 off-season forced him out of the league for two years and he would later sign with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009, backing up Donovan McNabb. Following the departure of McNabb, Vick would start full-time in 2010, at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina The Falcons opened the regular season on the road against the Carolina Panthers on September 10. Even though the Panthers scored first, with opposing kicker John Kasay getting a 54-yard field goal, in the second quarter, the Falcons unleashed their best, as Koenen got a 32-yard field goal and QB Michael Vick completed a 34-yard pass to WR Michael Jenkins. The Panthers tried to respond in the quarter with Kasay kicking a 46-yard field goal, but Vick. Other than Vick having a game, Warrick Dunn contributed with 132 rushing yards, while Atlantas newest member, defensive end John Abraham, had 5 tackles,2 sacks. With the win, the Falcons started the season at 1–0, at the Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia The Falcons entered their Week 2 home-opener against another NFC South rival, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The only Atlanta scores of the came in the first quarter. The only other Falcons score came in the quarter, with RB Fred McCrary getting a 4-yard TD run. The Buccaneers only score of the came in the second quarter. The ground game made short work of the Tampa Defense, with Michael Vick and Warrick Dunn combining for 261 rushing yards, rookie running back Jerious Norwood added 45 more rushing yards to the Falcons total. The Falcons set a new record for rushing yards in a game with 306. On the other side of the ball, the Falcons defense shut down the Tampa offense, also, they held Tampa Bay RB Carnell Cadillac Williams to just 37 yards on 15 carries. Special teams struggled as kicker Michael Koenen missed three field goals and had one blocked, making him 2/8 so far this season, with the win, the Falcons improved to 2–0. From the get-go the Falcons trailed, when they had a punt blocked by Saints safety Steve Gleason, the Falcons would respond, as kicker Morten Andersen kicked a 26-yard field goal

22.
Michael Vick
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Michael Dwayne Vick is a former American football quarterback who played 13 seasons in the National Football League, primarily with the Atlanta Falcons and the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at Virginia Tech and was selected by the Falcons as the first overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft. During his six years with the Falcons, Vick was regarded as having transformed the quarterback position with his abilities and was named to three Pro Bowls. He holds the record for the most career rushing yards by a quarterback, Vicks NFL career came to a halt in 2007 after he plead guilty for his involvement in a dog fighting ring and spent 21 months in federal prison. His arrest and subsequent conviction garnered Vick notoriety with the general public and he was released by the Falcons shortly before leaving prison. After serving his sentence, Vick signed with the Eagles in 2009, in his final two seasons, Vick played for the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers for one year each, primarily as a backup. He officially retired in 2017 after spending the entirety of the 2016 season in free agency, Vick was born in Newport News, Virginia as the second of four children to Brenda Vick and Michael Boddie, then unmarried teenagers. His mother worked two jobs, obtained financial assistance and had help from her parents, while his father worked long hours in the shipyards as a sandblaster and spray-painter. They were married when Michael was about five years old, the family lived in the Ridley Circle Homes, a public housing project in a financially depressed and crime-ridden neighborhood located in the East End section of the port city. Local residents interviewed in a 2007 newspaper article in the Richmond Times-Dispatch noted that not much changed nearly a decade after Vick left. One resident said that there was drug dealing, drive-by shootings, and other killings in the neighborhood, and suggested that sports were a way out, boddies employment required much travel, but he taught football skills to his two sons at an early age. Vick was only three years old when his father, nicknamed Bullet for his speed during his own playing days, Michael subsequently taught his younger brother Marcus Vick. As he grew up, Vick, went by the nickname Ookie, and learned football from Aaron Brooks. Vick and Brooks spent a lot of time at the local Boys, Sports kept me off the streets, Vick told Sporting News magazine in an interview published April 9,2001. It kept me from getting into what was going on, the bad stuff, lots of guys I knew have had bad problems. Vick first came to prominence while at Homer L. Ferguson High School in Newport News, as a freshman, he impressed many with his athletic ability, he threw for over 400 yards in a game that year. Ferguson High School was closed in 1996 as part of a Newport News Public Schools building modernization program, Vick, as a sophomore, and coach Tommy Reamon both moved to Warwick High School. Vick was a starter for the Warwick Raiders

23.
Brandon Jacobs
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Brandon Christopher Jacobs is a former American football running back, who spent the majority of his career with the New York Giants of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Giants in the round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He won two Super Bowl rings with the Giants, both against the New England Patriots and he also played one season for the San Francisco 49ers before returning to New York for his final season. He played college football at Coffeyville, Auburn, and Southern Illinois, Jacobs is larger and heavier than most NFL running backs, standing 64 tall and weighing over 264 pounds. He also runs the 100 meters in 10.82 seconds and he won two Super Bowls in seven seasons with the New York Giants, and holds the franchise record for most career rushing touchdowns. Brandon Jacobs grew up in Napoleonville, Louisiana, the eldest son of a single mother Janice Jacobs, he has a brother, Michael Jacobs. He was raised by his mother and her sisters and his aunt and uncle, Dianne and Phil Cheavious, later became his legal guardians. He never had a relationship with his father and he ran for more than 3,000 yards and scored 38 touchdowns in that senior campaign. Jacobss college career started at Coffeyville Community College in Coffeyville, Kansas, under the direction of head coach Jeff Leiker, Coffeyville is a member school of the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference. In 2001, his year at Coffeyville, he ran for 1,349 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was also named the team MVP for CCC, in his sophomore season for the Red Ravens he racked up 1,896 yards and 20 touchdowns on 267 carries for a 7.1 yard-per-carry average. In light of these efforts Jacobs was named a JUCO All-American and he once again garnered the Team MVP trophy and was also named the recipient of the Reb Russell Memorial Football Scholarship Award. The statistic of 1,896 yards rushing ranks second all-time on the Ravens individual season rushing yardage record, Jacobs continued his college career at Auburn University, along with first-round draft picks Carnell Williams, Ronnie Brown, and Jason Campbell. Jacobs was the running back behind Williams and Brown. Jacobs gained 446 yards on 72 carries and 2 touchdowns in 2003 for the Tigers, after the completion of the 2003 college football season, Jacobs transferred to then Division 1-AA Southern Illinois. Jacobs one year at Southern Illinois was another solid one and he led the team with 150 carries for 992 yards and 19 touchdowns, one less than the schools all-time leader, Muhammad Abdulqaadir, who, like Jacobs, also played at Coffeyville Community College. Jacobs was an All-American first-team selection by The NFL Draft Report and he led the conference and ranked tenth in the nation in scoring, averaging 9.5 points per game. Jacobs had eight receptions for 83 yards, returned six kickoffs for 140 yards and had five 100-yard rushing games including the playoffs, Jacobs was graded the 11th best running back available in the 2005 NFL Draft by Sports Illustrated

24.
Derrick Ward
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Derrick LaRon Ward is a former American football running back in the National Football League. He was drafted by the New York Jets in the round of the 2004 NFL Draft and played for the New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He played college football at Fresno State University and Ottawa University, Ward earned a Super Bowl ring with the Giants in Super Bowl XLII beating the New England Patriots. He is the cousin of former Patriots running back J. R. Redmond, Ward attended Valley View High School in Moreno Valley, California and was a letterman in football. As a junior, he was the 3rd string Rb and was not the Team MVP, for his collegiate career, he rushed 460 times for 3,152 yards and 39 touchdowns and caught seven passes for 96 yards. He gained 1,091 yards with 11 touchdowns on 197 carries, Ward was ruled academically ineligible to play at Fresno State in 1998, he earned Freshman All-America honors the following year despite playing with a broken right hand. He was limited to seven games for the Bulldogs in 2000 due to a knee injury. His Fresno State career ended when he was ruled ineligible to play in 2001 and 2002 due to academics. Ward transferred to Ottawa University in Kansas for his year in 2003. Also had 47 yards on four receptions in ten games at Ottawa, Ward was selected by the New York Jets in the seventh round of the 2004 NFL Draft. On September 5,2004, Ward was released by the Jets, Ward had a good season in 2007 rushing for 602 yards on 125 touches, averaging 4.8 yards per carry and scoring three touchdowns. On March 14,2008, Ward was re-signed by the Giants, because of their success in the backfield during the 2008 season, Ward and his teammates Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw were jokingly referred to as Earth, Wind and Fire. On December 21,2008, Ward led the Giants rushing attack with 215 rushing yards in a 34-28 overtime victory over the Carolina Panthers to clinch homefield advantage throughout the 2009 NFL Playoffs. He finished the season with 1,025 yards, making him, the strong performance by both running backs is credited to high grade run blocking by the Giants offensive line. While playing with the Giants, Ward was a resident of Weehawken, Ward was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on March 2,2009. He signed a contract worth $17 million. In the 2009 season for the Buccaneers he rushed 114 times for 409 yards and 1 touchdown, Ward was cut from the team on August 31,2010. On September 4,2010, Ward was signed by the Houston Texans, on July 3,2012, Ward announced his retirement via Twitter

25.
New York Giants
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The New York Giants are a professional American football team located in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference East division. The team plays its games at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants hold their training camp at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center at the Meadowlands Sports Complex. The Giants were one of five teams that joined the NFL in 1925 and their championship tally is surpassed only by the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears. Throughout their history, the Giants have featured 28 Hall of Fame players, including NFL Most Valuable Player award winners Mel Hein, Frank Gifford, Y. A. Tittle, and Lawrence Taylor. The teams heated rivalry with the Philadelphia Eagles is the oldest of the NFC East rivalries, dating all the way back to 1933, the Giants played their first game as an away game against All New Britain in New Britain, Connecticut, on October 4,1925. They defeated New Britain 26–0 in front of a crowd of 10,000, the Giants were successful in their first season, finishing with an 8–4 record. In its third season, the finished with the best record in the league at 11–1–1 and was awarded the NFL title. In 1930, there were many who questioned the quality of the professional game. In December 1930, the Giants played a team of Notre Dame All Stars at the Polo Grounds to raise money for the unemployed of New York City and it was also an opportunity to establish the skill and prestige of the pro game. Knute Rockne reassembled his Four Horsemen along with the stars of his 1924 Championship squad and told them to score early, Rockne, like much of the public, thought little of pro football and expected an easy win. But from the beginning it was a one-way contest, with Friedman running for two Giant touchdowns and Hap Moran passing for another, when it was all over, Coach Rockne told his team, That was the greatest football machine I ever saw. I am glad none of you got hurt, the game raised $100,000 for the homeless, and is often credited with establishing the legitimacy of the professional game for those who were critical. It also was the last game the legendary Rockne ever coached, in a 14-year span from 1933 to 1947, the Giants qualified to play in the NFL championship game 8 times, winning twice. During this period the Giants were led by Hall of Fame coach Steve Owen, the period also featured the 1944 Giants, which are ranked as the #1 defensive team in NFL history. a truly awesome unit. They gave up only 7.5 points per game and shut out five of their 10 opponents, though they lost 14-7 to the Green Bay Packers in the 1944 NFL Championship Game. The famous Sneakers Game was played in this era where the Giants defeated the Chicago Bears on an icy field in the 1934 NFL Championship Game, the Giants played the Detroit Lions to a scoreless tie on November 7,1943

26.
2008 New York Giants season
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The 2008 New York Giants season was the franchises 84th season in the National Football League as the team looked to defend its Super Bowl XLII title. They improved upon their 10–6 record from 2007, becoming NFC East champions, the Giants qualified for the postseason for the fourth consecutive year, marking the first time in club history that they had accomplished that. This was also the first time that the Giants made the playoffs the year making the Super Bowl, after missing the playoffs in 1987,1991. The 2008 Giants became the team in NFL history with two players to rush for more than 1,000 yards, Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward. This season was the last season the Giants had 11+ wins until 8 years later in 2016 when the Giants went 11-5, on March 14, free agent defensive tackle William Joseph departed to join Wilson with the Raiders. On April 10, defensive tackle Manuel Wright was released, on June 9, 15-year veteran, and seven-time Pro-Bowler, Michael Strahan retired and joined the Fox NFL broadcasting team. On August 26, undrafted rookie free-agent Terrance Stringer was waived, NOTES, The Giants move up one overall position in the first round due to the forfeiture of the New England Patriots first round draft pick. Giants traded RB Ryan Grant to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for a sixth round pick, Giants traded their 7th round pick to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for Placekicker Lawrence Tynes in the previous season. The Giants began their defense in the traditional NFL Kickoff game like previous champions when they played the Washington Redskins at Giants Stadium. Traditionally, this game is played on the first Thursday following Labor Day in the United States. This day fell on September 4 in 2008, NFL Kickoff game With their Super Bowl championship title to defend, the Giants began their season in the annual kickoff game against their NFC East rivals, the Washington Redskins. In the first quarter, New York got a fast start as Super Bowl XLII MVP QB Eli Manning capped off the opening drive with a 1-yard TD run. Later in the quarter, kicker John Carney managed to get a 24-yard field goal, in the second quarter, the G-Men increased their lead with Carney nailing a 25-yard and a 47-yard field goal. Near the end of the half, the Redskins managed to get on the board as QB Jason Campbell completed a 12-yard TD pass to WR Santana Moss, New Yorks defense stiffened in the second half and allowed them to hold on for the victory. With the win, not only did the Giants begin their season at 1–0, coming off their divisional home win over the Redskins, the Giants flew to the Edward Jones Dome for a Week 2 duel with the St. Louis Rams. In the first quarter, the G-Men drew first blood with QB Eli Manning completing a 33-yard TD pass to WR Plaxico Burress, in the second quarter, the Rams responded with kicker Josh Brown getting a 54-yard field goal. New York came right back with kicker John Carney nailing a 33-yard field goal, St. Louis would answer with Brown kicking a 54-yard field goal, while Carney gave the Giants a 33-yard field goal. In the third quarter, New York increased its lead with Manning completing a 10-yard TD pass to WR Amani Toomer, in the fourth quarter, the Rams tried to rally as QB Marc Bulger completed a 45-yard TD pass to WR Torry Holt

27.
DeAngelo Williams
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DeAngelo Chondon Williams is an American football running back who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Memphis, and was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft and he starred in a dual role in Carolina alongside Jonathan Stewart, until Williamss release in the 2014 offseason. He returned in 2015 with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Williams was considered the top running back in the state of Arkansas in 2001, having played at Wynne High School in Wynne, Arkansas. He missed most of his season with a broken bone in his foot. As a junior, he gained 1,044 yards rushing and scored 14 touchdowns, as a senior, he rushed for a single-season record 2,204 yards and 34 touchdowns, averaging 10.4 yards per carry while leading his squad to the state 4A championship. He was named the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette 2001 Offensive Player of the Year and was selected to the Associated Press Arkansas Super Team in 2001, also a letterman in track & field, Williams still holds the state 4A record in the 100-meter dash with an electronically-timed 10.81 seconds. He also helped lead Wynne to a finish in the 2001 state track championships. Williams was rated as the number 25 running back prospect in the nation and he was also recruited by Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Iowa before deciding on Memphis. Williams attended the University of Memphis, where he played for the Memphis Tigers football team and he holds the Division I National Collegiate Athletic Association record for 100-yard rushing games and All-purpose yards. He also ranks fourth on the all-time NCAA rushing list with 6,026 yards, Williams was named to the 2004 Pro Football Weekly All-America Team. Entering Memphis, Williams was a highly touted signee and he played in 10 games as a true freshman. In his first career game against Murray State, he racked up 129 rushing yards, on 12 rushes, against Tulane, he gained 166 rushing yards, including an 86-yard touchdown. For his performance in the Tulane game, he received the Conference USA Player of the Week, while playing Louisville, he suffered a knee sprain and was forced to sit out the next weeks contest against Mississippi State. He had a career high two rushing touchdowns against Army, as well as 10 carries and 110 rushing yards and he led the team with 684 rushing yards,103 carries and five rushing touchdowns. In the 2002 regular season opener against Tennessee Tech, Williams would have 61 rushing yards and 1 rushing touchdown and he would also have career highs of 135 receiving yards and 2 receiving touchdowns playing TTU. The following week against Mississippi, he would gain 131 rushing yards,36 receiving yards and he would also gain over 100 yards the following week against Southern Mississippi, finishing the game with 158 rushing yards. After a 108-yard game against Arkansas State and another 107-yard game against UAB the following week, the game after, he would break the record, when he posted 119 rushing yards against Mississippi State. He would continue the streak against the Houston Cougars with 120 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns, the next week he would have a career high,195 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns, in the victory against Tulane

28.
Jonathan Stewart
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Jonathan Creon Stewart is an American football running back for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. He was selected by the Panthers in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft and he played college football at the University of Oregon. Stewart is the leading rusher in Washington prep football history. At Timberline High School in Lacey, Washington, from 2001 to 2004, he rushed for 7,755 yards, in 2001, as a freshman, he rushed for 1,279 yards on 95 carries and scored 15 touchdowns. In 2002, as a sophomore, despite an injury causing him to miss almost half of the season, he rushed for 1,609 yards on 153 carries. As a junior, in 2003, he rushed for 2,566 yards on 285 carries, as a senior, in 2004, he rushed for 2,301 yards, averaging 11.2 yards per carry and scored 32 touchdowns. Against Centralia High School in 2004, Stewart rushed for 422 yards, after his senior season in 2004, among several other honors, he was named to the Parade High School All-American team, the USA Today All-USA team, and was the Washington Gatorade Player of the Year. Stewart was also on the schools track & field team, where he competed mainly as a sprinter and he placed third in the 100 meters at the prelims of the 2003 3A District IV Championships, with a season-best time of 10.90 seconds. He ran a career-best time of 10.78 seconds in the 100 meters in 2005, as a University of Oregon collegiate, he competed in the 60-meter dash, recording a personal-best time of 6.88 seconds at the 2007 MPSF Championships, where he placed fifth. In a national recruiting battle, Stewart chose the University of Oregon over USC, Notre Dame, Nebraska, California, Ohio State, and other schools. Coming out of Timberline High School in Lacey, Washington, Stewart came to the University of Oregon as one of the highest profile recruits in the programs history. He was known for his combination of speed and size. Stewarts true freshman season was highlighted by a pair of kickoff return touchdowns which made him the programs first player to return more than one kickoff for a score. Stewart ended up leading the nation in return average. Stewart finished his campaign with nine total touchdowns despite touching the football only 72 times. His 54 points made him the third leading scorer. An ankle injury suffered in a game against Montana would force him to action in two games and render him less than 100% in others. At one point early in the season, Stewart had accounted for five touchdowns in his first 20 touches of the football, Stewart finished his sophomore season as the teams leading rusher

29.
Carolina Panthers
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The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League, as a club of the leagues National Football Conference South division. The team president is Danny Morrison, and the coach is Ron Rivera. The Panthers were announced as the leagues 29th franchise in 1993 and they did not have another winning season until 2003, when they won the NFC Championship Game and reached Super Bowl XXXVIII, losing 32–29 to the New England Patriots. After recording playoff appearances in 2005 and 2008, the failed to record another playoff appearance until 2013. After losing in the round to the San Francisco 49ers in 2013 and the Seattle Seahawks in 2014, the Panthers finally returned to the Super Bowl in 2016. The Panthers have reached the playoffs seven times, advancing to four NFC Championship Games and they have won six division titles, one in the NFC West and five in the NFC South. The Carolina Panthers are legally registered as Panther Football, LLC, the team is headquartered in Bank of America Stadium in uptown Charlotte, also the teams home field. They are one of the few NFL teams to own the stadium they play in, the team hosts its annual training camp at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. On December 15,1987, entrepreneur Jerry Richardson announced his bid for an NFL expansion franchise in the Carolinas. Richardson drew his inspiration to pursue an NFL franchise from George Shinn, who had made a bid for an expansion National Basketball Association team in Charlotte. Richardson founded Richardson Sports, a partnership consisting of himself, his family, Richardson looked at four potential locations for a stadium, ultimately choosing uptown Charlotte. In choosing the name, the Richardsons did not run focus groups with potential fans. Their intention had always been the Panthers, Jerry Richardson began driving a car with the license plate PNTHRS near the end of 1989, to highlight the demand for professional football in the Carolinas, Richardson Sports held preseason games around the area from 1989 to 1991. The matchups were between existing NFL teams, in 1991, the group formally filed an application for the open expansion spot, and on October 26,1993, the 28 NFL owners unanimously named the Carolina Panthers as the 29th member of the NFL. The Panthers first competed in the 1995 NFL season, they were one of two teams to begin play that year, the other being the Jacksonville Jaguars. Former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dom Capers was named the first head coach, the team finished its inaugural season 7–9, the best performance ever from a first-year expansion team. They performed even better in their season, finishing with a 12–4 record and winning the NFC West division

30.
2009 Carolina Panthers season
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The 2009 Carolina Panthers season was the franchises 15th season in the National Football League. They failed to improve on their franchise-record 12–4 season in 2008, the 2009 Panthers are only the sixth team in NFL history to have two players rush for 1,000 yards, Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams, they are the last team to do so. It is also the first team in NFL history to have two players rush for more than 1,100 yards, the Panthers acquired a second round pick and a fourth round pick from the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for their first round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft. The Panthers began their season with a Week 1 duel with the Philadelphia Eagles and they were playing with Jake Delhomme, who had five interceptions, and one fumble in their postseason game, last year, vs. the Arizona Cardinals. In the first quarter, Carolina pounced first with running back DeAngelo Williams getting an 11-yard touchdown run, the Eagles would respond with kicker David Akers getting a 49-yard field goal. In the second quarter, Philadelphia took control as Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme lost a fumble, the Panthers would close out the period with kicker John Kasay nailing a 22-yard field goal. Afterwards, in the quarter, the Eagles closed out their domination as McNabb got a 3-yard touchdown run. With the loss, Carolina began its season at 0–1, Delhomme was benched after committing five turnovers. Hoping to rebound from their loss to the Eagles, the Panthers flew to the Georgia Dome for a Week 2 NFC South duel with the Atlanta Falcons, in the first quarter, Carolina delivered the first scratch as kicker John Kasay got a 38-yard field goal. The Falcons would answer with quarerback Matt Ryan completing a 24-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tony Gonzalez. Carolina would gain some ground as Kasay nailed a 50-yard field goal, after a scoreless third quarter, Atlanta would pull away as running back Michael Turner getting a 1-yard touchdown. The Panthers would try to rally, but get only get an 11-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jake Delhomme to tight end Dante Rosario, with the loss, Carolina fell to 0–2. Still looking for their first win of the season, the Panthers flew to Cowboys Stadium for a Week 3 Monday night duel with the Dallas Cowboys. After a scoreless first quarter, Carolina would get the lead in the quarter with quarterback Jake Delhommes 25-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dante Rosario. The Cowboys would take the lead in the quarter with kicker Nick Folks 24-yard field goal. The Panthers tried to rally, but the Cowboys defense would prevent their comeback from happening, with the loss, Carolina entered its bye week at 0–3. Following their bye week, the Panthers returned to Charlotte to face the Washington Redskins, after a DeAngelo Williams fumble, the Redskins struck first blood with quarterback Jason Campbells 10-yard touchdown pass to running back Clinton Portis. During the second quarter, linebacker Thomas Davis and defensive end Julius Peppers tackled Portis in the endzone for a safety, the Redskins responded with a 39-yard field goal by kicker Shaun Suisham

31.
American football positions
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In American football, each team has 11 players on the field at one time. The specific role that a player takes on the field is called his position, under the modern rules of American football, teams are allowed unlimited substitutions, that is, teams may change any number of players after any play. This has resulted in the development of three platoons of players, the offense, the defense, and the special teams, within those platoons, various specific positions exist depending on what each players main job is. In American football, the offense is the side in which the players have possession of the ball and it is their job to advance the ball towards the opponents end zone to score points. The backs and receivers are also known as skill position players or as eligible receivers. Offensive linemen are not usually eligible to advance the ball past the line of scrimmage during a play, the organization of the offense is strictly mandated by the rules, there must be at least seven players on the line of scrimmage and no more than four players behind it. The only players eligible to handle the ball during a play are the backs. The remaining players are considered ineligible, and may only block, within these strictures, however, creative coaches have developed a wide array of offensive formations to take advantage of different player skills and game situations. The following positions are standard in every game, though different teams will use different arrangements of them. The offensive line is responsible for blocking. The offensive line consists of, Center The center is the player who begins the play from scrimmage by snapping the ball to the quarterback. As the name suggests, the center usually plays in the middle of the offensive line, like all offensive linemen, the center has the responsibility to block defensive players. The center often also has the responsibility to call out blocking assignments, offensive guard Two guards line up directly on either side of the center. Like all interior linemen, their function is to block on both running and passing plays, in such cases, the guard is referred to as a pulling guard. Guards are typically shorter builds than tackles but taller than centers, offensive tackle Two tackles play outside of the guards. Their role is primarily to block on both running and passing plays, the area from one tackle to the other is an area of close line play in which blocks from behind, which are prohibited elsewhere on the field, are allowed. For a right-handed quarterback, the tackle is charged with protecting the quarterback from being hit from behind. Like a guard, the tackle may have to pull, on a running play, the six backs and receivers are those that line up outside or behind the offensive line

32.
Pro Bowl
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The Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League. Between 2014 and 2016, the NFL experimented with an unconferenced format, the players were picked in a televised schoolyard pick prior to the game. Unlike most major leagues, which hold their all-star games roughly midway through their respective regular seasons. Between 1970 and 2009, it was held the weekend after the Super Bowl. Since 2010, the Pro Bowl has been played the weekend before the Super Bowl, Players from the two teams competing in the Super Bowl do not participate. Observers and commentators expressed their disfavor with the Pro Bowl in its current state and it draws lower TV ratings than its regular-season games, although the game draws similar ratings to other major all-star games, such as the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. However, the biggest concern of teams is to avoid injuries to the star players, the Associated Press wrote that players in the 2012 game were hitting each other as though they were having a pillow fight. Between 1980 and 2016, the game was played at Aloha Stadium in Hawaii, on June 1,2016, the NFL announced that they reached a multi-year deal to move the game to Orlando, Florida as part of the leagues ongoing efforts to make the game more relevant. For years, the game has suffered from lack of interest due to perceived low quality, the 2017 Pro Bowl will also mark a return to the AFC–NFC format. The first Pro All-Star Game, featuring the all-stars of the 1938 season, was played on January 15,1939 at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles. The NFL All-Star Game was played again in Los Angeles in 1940 and then in New York, although originally planned as an annual contest, the all-star game was discontinued after 1942 because of travel restrictions put in place during World War II. During the first five games, an all-star team would face that years league champion. The league champion won the first four games before the all-stars were victorious in the game of this early series. The concept of a game was not revived until June 1950. The game was sponsored by the Los Angeles Publishers Association and it was decided that the game would feature all-star teams from each of the leagues two conferences rather than the league champion versus all-star format which had been used previously. This was done to avoid confusion with the Chicago College All-Star Game, the teams would be led by the coach of each of the conference champions. The first 21 games of the series were played in Los Angeles, the site of the game was changed annually for each of the next seven years before the game was moved to Aloha Stadium in Halawa, Hawaii for 30 straight seasons from 1980 through 2009. With the new rule being that the teams do not include players from the teams that will be playing in the Super Bowl

33.
Pro Football Hall of Fame
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The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football. As of 2017, there are a total of 310 members of the Hall of Fame, groundbreaking for the building was held on August 11,1962. The original building contained just two rooms, and 19,000 square feet of interior space, in April 1970, ground was broken for the first of many expansions. This first expansion cost $620,000, and was completed in May 1971, the size was increased to 34,000 square feet by adding another room. The pro shop opened with this expansion and this was also an important milestone for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, as yearly attendance passed the 200,000 mark for the first time. In November 1977, work began on another project, costing US$1,200,000. It was completed in November 1978, enlarging the shop and research library. The total size of the hall was now 50,500 square feet, the building remained largely unchanged until July 1993. The Hall then announced yet another expansion, costing US$9,200,000 and this expansion was completed in October 1995. The buildings size was increased to 82,307 square feet, the most notable addition was the GameDay Stadium, which shows an NFL Films production on a 20-foot by 42-foot Cinemascope screen. Through 2017, all inductees except one, played part of their professional career in the NFL. For CFL stars, there is a parallel Canadian Football Hall of Fame, only one player, the Chicago Bears have the most Hall of Famers among the leagues franchises with 32 enshrinees. Enshrinees are selected by a 46-person committee, largely made up of media members, each city that has a current NFL team sends one representative from the local media to the committee. A city with more than one franchise sends a representative for each franchise, there are also 13 at-large delegates, and one representative from the Pro Football Writers Association. Except for the PFWA representative, who is appointed to a term, all other appointments are open-ended and terminated only by death, incapacitation, retirement. To be eligible for the process, a player or coach must have been retired for at least five years. Any other contributor such as an owner or executive can be voted in at any time. Fans may nominate any player, coach or contributor by simply writing to the Pro Football Hall of Fame via letter or email

34.
2006 NFL season
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The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League. Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31,2006, the NFL title was eventually won by the Indianapolis Colts, when they defeated the Chicago Bears 29-17 in Super Bowl XLI at Dolphin Stadium at Miami Gardens, Florida on February 4. Under the flexible-scheduling system, all Sunday games in the affected weeks tentatively had the start times of 1 p. m. ET/10 a. m. PT, except played in the Pacific or Mountain time zones. On the Tuesday 12 days before the games, the league moved one game to the primetime slot and this was the first season that NBC held the rights to televise Sunday Night Football, becoming the beneficiaries by negotiating the new flexible-scheduling system. ESPN became the new home of Monday Night Football, replacing sister network American Broadcasting Company, meanwhile, CBS and Fox renewed their television contracts to the American Football Conference and the National Football Conference packages, respectively. Louis Rams – Scott Linehan, replaced interim head coach Joe Vitt who replaced Mike Martz who was not allowed to coach due to problems during the 2005 season. W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against Clinched playoff seeds are marked in parentheses, no tie games occurred this year. Tiebreakers Source,2007 NFL Record and Fact Book a Cincinnati finished ahead of Pittsburgh in the AFC North based on division record, B Tennessee finished ahead of Jacksonville in the AFC South based on division record. C Kansas City finished ahead of Denver in the AFC West based on division record, D Indianapolis clinched the AFC #3 seed based on their head-to-head victory over New England. E New Orleans clinched the NFC #2 seed based on their victory over Philadelphia. Giants clinched the NFC #6 seed based on strength of victory than Green Bay, while Carolina. Giants and Green Bay had better conference records, within each conference, the four division winners and the two wild card teams qualified for the playoffs. The four division winners are seeded 1 through 4 based on their overall won-lost-tied record, the NFL does not use a fixed bracket playoff system, and there are no restrictions regarding teams from the same division matching up in any round. In the first round, dubbed the wild-card playoffs or wild-card weekend, the division winner hosts the sixth seed wild card. The 1 and 2 seeds from each conference then receive a bye in the first round, in the second round, the divisional playoffs, the number 1 seed hosts the worst surviving seed from the first round, while the number 2 seed will play the other team. The two surviving teams from each divisional playoff games then meet in the respective AFC and NFC Conference Championship games. Although the Super Bowl, the fourth and final round of the playoffs, is played at a neutral site, * Indicates overtime victory 2007 Pro Bowl at Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii, AFC31, NFC28 End zone celebrations became more restricted

35.
2008 NFL season
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The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League, themed with the slogan Believe in Now. Conversely, the Detroit Lions became the first NFL team with a season since the strike-shortened 1982 NFL season. For the first time since the NFL expanded to the sixteen game season in 1978, previously two teams won two or fewer games in 1979,1981,1985,1992 and 2001. In preseason games, the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game was played August 3 between the Indianapolis Colts and Washington Redskins, which aired on NBC. Other preseason highlights included the first game of the Toronto Series, the Bills won that game, 24–21. The games kickoff was ninety minutes earlier than years, at 7 p. m. EDT. Other featured games during the week included the NBC Sunday Night Football game between the Chicago Bears and the Indianapolis Colts, in which the Kyle Orton-led Bears upset the Colts 29–13. Also, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady suffered a season ending injury against the Kansas City Chiefs, the 2008 season also was the third season of the use of the flexible scheduling for Sunday games starting with Week 11. This was the second season that the league played at least one regular season game outside the United States as part of its International Series. The contest between the San Diego Chargers and the New Orleans Saints was played at Wembley Stadium in London on October 26, the Chargers played at Buffalo the week beforehand on October 19 so they could immediately travel to London afterward in order to get used to the time difference. The league has also approved the Bills’ request to play at least one regular season game at Torontos Rogers Centre over each of the next five seasons. Team owner Ralph Wilson petitioned the league to play at least one game in Canada to strengthen his clubs fan base in Ontario, the game in Toronto was on December 7, after the end of the 2008 CFL season, against the Miami Dolphins, Miami won 16–3. CBS televised both games regionally, the Toronto game was carried across Canada on Rogers Sportsnet and City TV, a third game on NFL Network, featuring the Arizona Cardinals and the Philadelphia Eagles followed at 8,15 PM EST. The NFLs Pro Bowl all-star game at the end of the season was played at Aloha Stadium in the Honolulu, the league had the option under their current contract to hold the game elsewhere, including the possibility of moving it to the host site of the Super Bowl. W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against Playoff seeds are marked in parentheses, Giants clinched the NFC #1 seed over Carolina based on a head-to-head victory. B Miami finished ahead of New England in the AFC East based on conference record. C San Diego finished ahead of Denver in the AFC West based on a division record. D Baltimore clinched the AFC #6 seed over New England based on a conference record

36.
2009 NFL season
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The 2009 NFL season was the 90th season in the history of the National Football League. The preseason started with the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on August 9,2009, and this was the first time in NFL history two teams won their first 13 games or more. The 2009 NFL Draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on April 25 and 26,2009, the 2009 season began on September 10,2009. The Tennessee Titans defeated the Buffalo Bills 21–18, and both wore throwback jerseys celebrating the two franchises AFL origins, both teams made their first Hall of Fame Game appearance since the 1980s. The rest of the matchups were announced March 30,2009. Highlights, among others, included a rematch of Super Bowl XLIII between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Arizona Cardinals on ESPN, the opening weekend game on NBC Sunday Night Football featured the Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers, which the Packers won, 21–15. San Diego defeated Oakland by a score of 24–20 in the nightcap with their own fourth quarter comeback, during the month of October, teams across the league honored National Breast Cancer Awareness Month by wearing gloves, wristbands, patches, towels and shoes accented with pink. Banners were hung around league stadiums to raise awareness, and the NFLs website featured a pink background, Referees and coaches hats also had pink accents. In addition, the NFL Referees Association donated $24,000 to breast cancer charities throughout the month, also used were pink goal post padding, pink coins, and pink ribbon decals on the field and on footballs. This years International Series game was played October 25,2009 at 1,00 pm EDT again at Wembley Stadium in London, the New England Patriots defeated the designated home team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 35–7. CBS televised this game on a basis as the Patriots were the visiting team. The Thanksgiving Day games were contested on Thursday, November 26,2009, on Fox, Green Bay won over Detroit, 34–12. The Dallas Cowboys defeated the Oakland Raiders, 24–7 on CBS, and in the prime time NFL Network game, earlier reports on a potential Bills-Toronto Argonauts doubleheader and reports of the league favoring other teams were proven inaccurate. No preseason game was played in series for 2009. The league scheduled a rare Friday night game on December 25, the game, held at LP Field in Nashville, saw the San Diego Chargers trounce the Tennessee Titans 42–17. Although both teams are charter AFL franchises and thus celebrated their 50th season in 2009, this game was not part of the organized celebrations. All other games were announced on April 14,2009 on the NFL Network and this season marked the first time ever that the Buffalo Bills and Tampa Bay Buccaneers met at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo in regular season play. In 2002, when the current scheduling formula was arranged, the fact that Buffalo had never hosted Tampa Bay in the Buccaneers history was one of the quirks cited in creating the formula

Atlanta Falcons
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The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Falcons compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference South division. The Falcons joined the NFL in 1965 as an expansion team, the AFL instead granted a franchise to Miami. The Falcons are tied with the Dolphi

Warrick Dunn
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Warrick DeMon Dunn is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League for twelve seasons. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 12th overall in the 1997 NFL Draft, Dunn was named AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1997 and earned three Pro Bowl selections in his career. After his playing career, Dunn took

1.
Dunn signing autographs in 2009.

American football
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The offense must advance at least ten yards in four downs, or plays, or else they turn over the football to the opposing team, if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs. Points are primarily scored by advancing the ball into the teams end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponents goalposts for a field goal. The te

1.
Larry Fitzgerald catches a pass while defended by Cortland Finnegan at the 2009 Pro Bowl

2.
A photograph of Walter Camp, the "Father of American Football", taken from 1878 when Camp was captain of Yale 's football team

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William "Pudge" Heffelfinger, widely regarded as the first professional football player

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A quarterback for the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes under center, ready to take the snap

Rush (gridiron football)
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Rushing has two different meanings in gridiron football. The first is a taken by the offense that means to advance the ball by running with it, as opposed to passing. The other is a taken by the defense that means to charge towards the quarterback. When players on the defense are collectively rushing the passer, it is called the pass rush, in both

1.
Running back Chris Johnson of the East Carolina Pirates (#5) receiving the handoff and rushing the ball during the 2007 Hawaii Bowl.

Forward pass
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In several forms of football a forward pass is a throwing of the ball in the direction that the offensive team is trying to move, towards the defensive teams goal line. In some football codes, such as football, the kicked forward pass is used so ubiquitously that it is not thought of as a distinct kind of play at all. In these sports, the concept o

1.
An American football quarterback preparing to pass.

2.
UCLA quarterback Kevin Craft throws a pass during an October 2008 game against the California Golden Bears.

3.
Eddie Cochems, "Father of the Forward Pass", 1907

4.
1906 St. Louis Post-Dispatch drawing of Brad Robinson, who threw the first legal forward pass

Quarterback
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A quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the team and line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is considered the leader of the offensive team. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually the leader of the offense, the quarterback touches th

4.
Michael Vick, a member of the NFC team at the NFL's 2006 Pro Bowl, uses his mobility to elude Dwight Freeney.

Running back
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A running back is an American and Canadian football position, a member of the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a play, to catch passes from out of the backfield. There are usually one or two running backs on the field for a play, depending on the offensive formation. A running

1.
A running back turns up the field in an attempt to reach the end zone.

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The running back/halfback (blue) in a typical I formation.

National Football League
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The National Football League is a professional American football league consisting of 32 teams, divided equally between the National Football Conference and the American Football Conference. The NFL is one of the four professional sports leagues in North America. The NFLs 17-week regular season runs from the week after Labor Day to the week after C

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The headquarters of the National Football League at 345 Park Avenue, Midtown Manhattan, New York City, U.S.

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National Football League

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The Akron Pros won the first APFA (NFL) Championship.

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NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell

Yard
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The yard is an English unit of length, in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement, that comprises 3 feet or 36 inches. It is by international agreement in 1959 standardized as exactly 0.9144 meters, a metal yardstick originally formed the physical standard from which all other units of length were officially derived in bot

1.
The informal public imperial measurement standards erected at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, London, in the 19th century: 1 British yard, 2 feet, 1 foot, 6 inches, and 3 inches. The inexact monument was designed to permit rods of the correct measure to fit snuggly into its pins at an ambient temperature of 62 °F (16 2 ⁄ 3 °C).

2.
Bronze Yard №11, the official standard of length for the United States between 1855 and 1892, when the Treasury Department formally adopted a metric standard. Bronze Yard №11 was forged to be an exact copy of the British Imperial Standard Yard held by Parliament. Both are line standards: the yard was defined by the distance at 62 °F between two fine lines drawn on gold plugs (closeup, top) installed in recesses near each end of the bar.

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Two yardsticks, used for measuring "yard goods"

Fullback (American football)
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A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback. Examples of players who have excelled at the hybrid running-blocking-pass catching role include Mike Alstott, in the days before two platoons, the fullback was usually the teams punter and drop

1.
Example of fullback positioning in the "I-Form" offense.

Larry Csonka
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Lawrence Richard Larry Csonka is a former professional American football fullback and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. With the Miami Dolphins he was a member of their season in 1972. One of six children, Csonka was born in the Akron suburb Stow, Ohio and he weighed almost ten pounds at birth,150 pounds at age 12, and 220 pounds at 16. Cs

1.
Csonka in 1972

Halfback (American football)
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A halfback is an offensive position in American football, whose duties involve lining up in the backfield and carrying the ball on most rushing plays, i. e. a running back. The halfback position is one of the more glamorous positions on the field, sometimes the halfback can catch the ball from the backfield on short passing plays as he is an eligib

1.
Adrian Peterson

2.
1905 St. Louis Post-Dispatch photograph of St. Louis University halfback Brad Robinson

Mercury Morris
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Eugene Edward Mercury Morris, is a former American football running back and kick returner. He played for seven years, primarily for the Miami Dolphins in the American Football League, Morris played in three Super Bowls and was selected to three Pro Bowls. In 1982, Morris was convicted of drug trafficking charges. After three and one-half years in

1.
Mercury Morris

Miami Dolphins
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The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football franchise based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues American Football Conference East division. The Dolphins play their games at Hard Rock Stadium in the northern suburb of Miami Gardens, Florida. The Dolphins and the At

1.
Statue of Don Shula outside Sun Life Stadium

3.
Quarterback Earl Morrall in 1976, his final year in the NFL

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Dan Marino spent 17 seasons with the Dolphins from 1983–1999.

1972 Miami Dolphins season
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The 1972 Miami Dolphins season was the team’s seventh season, and third season in the National Football League. The 1972 Dolphins are the only National Football League team to win the Super Bowl with a perfect season, the undefeated campaign was led by coach Don Shula and notable players Bob Griese, Earl Morrall, and Larry Csonka. The 1972 Dolphins

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The 1972 team on the Miami Dolphins Honor Roll

2.
President Obama honoring the 1972 team at the White House in 2013

Super Bowl
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The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the National Football League. The game is the culmination to a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. Normally, Roman numerals are used to each game, rather than the year in which it is held. For example, Super Bowl I was played on January 15,1967, the single exception

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The generic Super Bowl logo used since Super Bowl XLV in 2010, showcasing the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Each year's logo has the host stadium as a backdrop and the Roman numeral of the game below the phrase "Super Bowl".

Franco Harris
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Franco Harris is a former American football fullback who played in the National Football League for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks. In the 1972 NFL Draft he was picked up by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round and his selection by the team was considered controversial at the time, as many thought the team would select his Penn

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Harris in 2009

Rocky Bleier
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Robert Patrick Rocky Bleier is an American former professional football player. He was a National Football League halfback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1968, nicknamed Rocky as a baby, Bleier said, As the first born of the family, my dad was proud, as all parents are. And the guys would come into the bar and say Bob, and my dad would go, Aw, you

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Rocky Bleier (left) showing his Super Bowl rings, which are being worn by U.S. Army Captain Larsen

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Bleier signs an autograph at the North Dakota National Guard's 2009 Safety Conference in Bismarck.

Pittsburgh Steelers
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The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Steelers compete in the National Football League, as a club of the leagues American Football Conference North division. Founded in 1933, the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC, Pittsburgh has won more Super Bowl titles and hosted more

Kevin Mack
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James Kevin Mack is a former professional American football player who played running back. Mack was born in Kings Mountain, North Carolina and he played football collegiately at Clemson University. Mack played for the Los Angeles Express of the United States Football League in 1984 and he was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the 1st round of th

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Kevin Mack

2006 Atlanta Falcons season
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The 2006 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchises 41st in the National Football League. The team attempted to improve on their 8–8 record in 2005, Falcons quarterback Michael Vick became the first quarterback in modern NFL history to rush for over 1,000 yards, with 1,039. Running back Warrick Dunn rushed for 1,140 yards, making the 2006 Falcons on

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Falcons players at Washington on December 3

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Michael Vick (among other players) on the sidelines during week 6

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Vick and Baltimore's Corey Ivy in the week 11 loss

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Vick with Baltimore's Terrell Suggs

Michael Vick
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Michael Dwayne Vick is a former American football quarterback who played 13 seasons in the National Football League, primarily with the Atlanta Falcons and the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at Virginia Tech and was selected by the Falcons as the first overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft. During his six years with the Falcons, Vick

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Vick in September 2009

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Lane Stadium, where Vick played his college games

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Vick during the 2006 season

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Vick at the 2006 Pro Bowl

Brandon Jacobs
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Brandon Christopher Jacobs is a former American football running back, who spent the majority of his career with the New York Giants of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Giants in the round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He won two Super Bowl rings with the Giants, both against the New England Patriots and he also played one season for th

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Jacobs in 2011

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Brandon Jacobs during the 2007 training camp.

Derrick Ward
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Derrick LaRon Ward is a former American football running back in the National Football League. He was drafted by the New York Jets in the round of the 2004 NFL Draft and played for the New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He played college football at Fresno State University and Ottawa University, Ward earned a Super Bowl ring with the Giants in

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Ward in 2010.

New York Giants
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The New York Giants are a professional American football team located in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference East division. The team plays its games at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants hold their training camp at the Quest

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Al Blozis, Giants tackle, died in World War II. According to Mel Hein, "If he hadn't been killed, he could have been the greatest tackle who ever played football."

2008 New York Giants season
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The 2008 New York Giants season was the franchises 84th season in the National Football League as the team looked to defend its Super Bowl XLII title. They improved upon their 10–6 record from 2007, becoming NFC East champions, the Giants qualified for the postseason for the fourth consecutive year, marking the first time in club history that they

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The Cincinnati Bengals visit Giants Stadium, September 21

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New York on offense in week 3

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Eli Manning in the shotgun

DeAngelo Williams
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DeAngelo Chondon Williams is an American football running back who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Memphis, and was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft and he starred in a dual role in Carolina alongside Jonathan Stewart, until Williamss release in the 2014 offseason. He returned in 201

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Williams at ESPN The Weekend in February 2010.

Jonathan Stewart
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Jonathan Creon Stewart is an American football running back for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. He was selected by the Panthers in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft and he played college football at the University of Oregon. Stewart is the leading rusher in Washington prep football history. At Timberline High School in La

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Stewart playing for the Panthers in 2013.

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Stewart (far right) in 2011.

Carolina Panthers
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The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League, as a club of the leagues National Football Conference South division. The team president is Danny Morrison, and the coach is Ron Rivera. The Panthers were announced as the leagues 29th franchise i

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Head coach Ron Rivera

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An exterior view of Bank of America Stadium as seen in 2006.

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Panthers mascot Sir Purr, wearing a white jersey

2009 Carolina Panthers season
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The 2009 Carolina Panthers season was the franchises 15th season in the National Football League. They failed to improve on their franchise-record 12–4 season in 2008, the 2009 Panthers are only the sixth team in NFL history to have two players rush for 1,000 yards, Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams, they are the last team to do so. It is also

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2009 Carolina Panthers season

American football positions
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In American football, each team has 11 players on the field at one time. The specific role that a player takes on the field is called his position, under the modern rules of American football, teams are allowed unlimited substitutions, that is, teams may change any number of players after any play. This has resulted in the development of three plat

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The offensive line (on left, in orange shirts) consists of a center (with ball in hand ready to snap) two guards on either side of him, and two tackles.

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A diagram showing an I formation on offense and a 4-3 formation on defense

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Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback #14 Anthony Morelli hands the ball off to his running back #33 Austin Scott in their 2007 season opener.

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A wide receiver (#87, in white) begins a play in the flanker position

Pro Bowl
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The Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League. Between 2014 and 2016, the NFL experimented with an unconferenced format, the players were picked in a televised schoolyard pick prior to the game. Unlike most major leagues, which hold their all-star games roughly midway through their respective regular seasons. Between 1970 and 20

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The Pro Bowl Most Valuable Player trophy

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Tackle during the 2006 Pro Bowl in Hawaii

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Kyle Rudolph with the Pro Bowl MVP trophy in 2013.

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Quarterback Peyton Manning (#18) before the 2006 Pro Bowl.

Pro Football Hall of Fame
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The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football. As of 2017, there are a total of 310 members of the Hall of Fame, groundbreaking for the building was held on August 11,1962. The original building contained just two rooms, and 19,000 square feet of interior space, in April 1970, ground was broken for the first o

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The Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio

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The Hall is made up of several sections, at heart is the display of inductees.

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Inside the original structure in 2008.

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Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium with the Hall of Fame in lower right

2006 NFL season
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The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League. Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31,2006, the NFL title was eventually won by the Indianapolis Colts, when they defeated the Chicago Bears 29-17 in Super Bowl XLI at Dolphin Stadium at Miami Gardens, Florida on February 4. Under the flexible-sc

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Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najeh Davenport against the Baltimore Ravens in week 12 of the 2006 season

2008 NFL season
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The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League, themed with the slogan Believe in Now. Conversely, the Detroit Lions became the first NFL team with a season since the strike-shortened 1982 NFL season. For the first time since the NFL expanded to the sixteen game season in 1978, previously two teams won two or fewer

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Thomas Jones scores a touchdown for the New York Jets against the St. Louis Rams in week 10 of the season

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Seattle and the New York Jets play on December 21, 2008

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NFL on Fox announcers at Candlestick Park, November 16, 2008

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2008 NFC South champions Carolina against Chicago in week 2 of the season

2009 NFL season
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The 2009 NFL season was the 90th season in the history of the National Football League. The preseason started with the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on August 9,2009, and this was the first time in NFL history two teams won their first 13 games or more. The 2009 NFL Draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on April 25 and 26,2009,

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The 2009 NFL season marked the 50th season of the original eight charter members of the American Football League.

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Paul Brown, the first head coach and namesake of the Browns, who won four AAFC and three NFL championships as coach of the Browns, is a Pro Football Hall of Fame member, and is widely regarded as one of football's greatest coaches of all time.

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The 1948 Cleveland Browns recorded professional football's second-ever unbeaten and untied season (official team portrait). The squad included seven future members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

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Former Browns RB Jim Brown was a prominent member of the 1964 NFL championship team, the team's all-time leader in rushing yards, and a Pro Football Hall of Fame member. He is currently a special advisor with the Browns.

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Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Johnny Unitas, (1933-2002), was the Baltimore Colts' starting quarterback and famed "Number 19", from 1956 to 1972. Unitas was raised in the Pittsburgh area and played earlier for the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky

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The Indianapolis Colts played in the RCA Dome from 1984 until 2007.

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John Madden (right, shown with Senator Susan Collins) was head coach of the Raiders for 10 seasons. Madden's overall winning percentage including playoff games ranks second in league history. He won a Super Bowl and never had a losing season as a head coach.

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Raider's Hall of Famer Marcus Allen is considered one of the greatest goal line and short-yard runners in National Football League history.

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Raider's Hall of Famer Tim Brown spent 16 years with the Raiders, during which he established himself as one of the NFL's most prolific wide receivers.

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The NFL International Series logo used for 2015; the year is updated annually, with the new NFL Shield being used for the first time in 2009. In 2015 an alternative black and gold version was also used.

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Opening ceremony at Wembley before the Denver vs. San Francisco 2010 game